Seeley Booth
Special Agent Seeley Joseph Booth is a Special Agent with the FBI. What began as a consultation with Dr. Temperance Brennan, a forensic anthropologist with the Jeffersonian Institute, turned into a meaningful partnership. He is portrayed by David Boreanaz. Personality When it comes to solving crime, Booth has a very different approach from Dr. Brennan and her team, preferring a more human, interpersonal and intuitive set of methods. While he finds the information Dr. Brennan and her team uncover valuable, he often finds their means overly convoluted and restrictive, and adds his intuition and knowledge of people on top of it — something that clashes with Dr. Brennan's hard, objective and analytical approach which is mindful of its own limits. While Booth tries to keep personal and professional life strictly separate, aspects of his personal life leak through. He is a religious man by nature and a practicing Roman Catholic, seeking to atone for the lives he took as a sniper through his work in the FBI . While in the Army Rangers he was apparently tortured, leaving him with emotional and physical scars (revealed in Two Bodies in the Lab). He was romantically entangled with a blonde lawyer named Tessa. He also has an eight-year old son named Parker Booth with his ex-girlfriend, Rebecca. Originally, the communication between Booth and Rebecca seemed hostile, and she denied him visitation out of spite; however it was later revealed that is not the case, and relations between them have dramatically improved. He also has a brother named Jared. During a conversation with Dr. Wyatt, we learn he is from Pittsburgh. It was also revealed at the end of Season 1 that Booth is recovering from a gambling addiction. Booth does not socially fit in with the collection of "geeks" (whom he and his FBI colleagues refer to as "squints") that make up Dr. Brennan's team. Booth fills out the stereotype of the "all American boy" — now all grown up — very well. He is world-wise, socially at ease with people, and apparently at ease with women (a contrast to the humorous social bumbling sometimes exhibited by some of Dr. Brennan's team). His boss at the FBI is Sam Cullen. Booth is a fan of classic rock and arena rock music. He has expressed great affection for the group Foreigner and poked fun at Bones for her interest in new world, jazz music. He also likes the band Poco and sang their song, Keep on Trying with Bones. He was also quite excited when Gordon Wyatt revealed he had been in a band Nody Comet when he was younger that Booth had actually liked and had been curious about when the broke up. It is revealed in the season three episode Mummy in the Maze that Seeley suffers from coulrophobia, an abnormal or exaggerated fear of clowns. Character history Seeley Booth is a former sniper of the United States Army Rangers, and an expert knife thrower. He is currently an agent with the FBI. He frequently consults with his professional partner Dr. Brennan, whom he has nicknamed 'Bones', and her team (he refers to them as "squints"), acting as a liaison between the FBI and the Jeffersonian Institute. When it comes to solving crimes, Seeley has a very different approach from Brennan and her team, preferring a more human, interpersonal and intuitive set of methods. While he finds the information Dr. Brennan and her team uncover to be valuable clues, he often finds their means overly convoluted and restrictive, and prefers to add his own intuition and knowledge of people to it — something which clashes with Dr. Brennan's scientific, objective, and analytical approach, which has its own limitations. While Seeley tries to keep personal and professional life strictly separate, aspects of his personal life leak through. He is a religious man by nature, having been an altar boy as a child, (he knows a little Latin) and is still a practicing Roman Catholic , seeking to atone for the lives he took as a sniper while an Army Ranger and since through his work in the FBI. His father flew fighter planes during the Vietnam War and his mother composed jingles for television adverts. While in the Army Rangers, he was apparently tortured, leaving him with emotional and physical scars (revealed in "Two Bodies in the Lab"). Booth has apparently been serving the FBI for the past 12 years as of "The Crank in the Shaft", meaning that he was either 24 or 25 when he started working with the FBI. The "squints" soon began their habit of interfering, or be simply being very interested, with his personal life. Angela asked personal questions about and directly to Tessa, and even advised them on island trips. When he was dating Camille, Angela and Hodgins soon found out from what they had seen in the lab. But what really interests them is his relationship with Brennan; They all hint at it, and Angela always asks them questions. Camille herself becomes interested, asking questions as well, such as an instance when she was undercover, she asked if there was only one bed where they were seeing them so close Booth sat on Brennan's clothes. He became Hodgins' adviser when proposing to Angela. He has a brother named Jared who worked at the Pentagon and has a drinking problem. In Season 2, Episode 14 "The Man in the Mansion" he tells Dr. Gordon Gordon Wyatt that he is from Pittsburgh. However, then in season 4, Booth tells Brennan he is from Philadelphia, and he is a fan of the Philadelphia Flyers. It was also revealed at the end of Season 1 that Seeley is recovering from a gambling addiction, which possibly arose as a coping mechanism after separating from the military and leaving a stressful, war-time environment. Early in the series, Seeley once arrested Brennan for shooting a murderer who, despite trying to kill her by setting her on fire, was unarmed at the time. Even though she was not convicted, she was still charged with a felony, which meant her original application for a concealed weapon was denied. In the second season, she was allowed a permit, and later bought herself an oversized gun from a local mall. At the end of the second season, Seeley agrees to be Jack Hodgins' best man in his wedding to Angela Montenegro after Zack Addy refuses. It is unclear whether he knew he was the second choice, but the issue became moot after the wedding was called off, leaving Seeley and Temperance standing at the altar. In the third season, Seeley uses information found by Brennan and the lab team to track down a serial killer known as Gormogon, which forms the season's "story arc". In the first and second episode of the fourth season, "Yanks in the U.K.", Booth was given the title of "Official Junior Knight of the Realm," although the medal was from a toy-store. In the season 4 episode, "Double Trouble in the Panhandle", he reveals his father was a barber as well as a drunk (revealed earlier in the season), and abusive. In the episode "Mayhem on a Cross" Booth states, had it not been for his grandfather, he might have killed himself as an adolescent, though he only reveals this to help Brennan when she told him and Sweets about her own trauma in the foster system. Booth, Brennan, and Sweets all had abusive childhoods and have formed something of a surrogate family, clearly affectionate, but hidden behind banter and mock insults. In season 4 episode "The Hero in the Hold", it is revealed he named his son Parker, after his slain spotter, Cpl. Edward "Teddy" Parker. Booth blamed himself for Teddy's death until he came face to face with Teddy's ghost who revealed that his death was not Booth's fault but his own as he disobeyed his superior's orders to "get down" repeatedly. In the end of the episode Teddy reveals himself to Bones on the anniversary of his death. When Booth goes to the cemetery, he sees Teddy's girlfriend, and Teddy appears next to Brennan, who doesn't know who he is and thinks he is just another man visiting fallen comrades. Brennan assumes Booth was hallucinating Teddy's appearance, despite the fact he assisted Booth in an escape which would have required two men. In the season 4 episode "The Critic in the Cabernet" Temperance Brennan decides to have a child and asks for Booth's semen for her child. Booth considers Temperance's request. This causes him large amounts of stress, which he irrationally denies to Bones and Sweets. Later, he begins to hallucinate visions of the character Stewie Griffin from the cartoon Family Guy. This, combined with his stress over Brennan's request, causes him to grow continually irrational, as he refuses to reveal his experiences to anyone. Later, he seemingly forgets he is hallucinating, when "Stewie" appears while Booth is questioning a witness. He converses with "Stewie" while the others watch, and is seemingly confused by Brennan's concern he is talking to an invisible cartoon character. Brennan takes Booth to the hospital for his hallucinations, which she believes include Edward "Teddy" Parker in the previous episode "The Hero in the Hold". It was announced Booth had a brain tumor and needed immediate surgery. Though he had earlier refused to give Brennan his sperm while he was hallucinating because he would want to be a part of the child's life, Booth tells her before going into surgery if something should happen to him, he wants her to have his baby. In the last episode of season four "The End in the Beginning" the surgery to remove Booth's brain tumor was a success. However Booth reacted poorly to the anesthesia which resulted in a coma that lasted four days. When he awoke muttering about how real the dream he had was (the subject of the episode), Brennan was there by his side, but he is unable to remember who Brennan was. The season ends with Booth's memory shattered and Brennan shocked that her partner and close friend of 4 years cannot remember her. It has been confirmed that Booth did not lose his memory, but was actually confused with which Temperance Brennan he was seeing - the one from his dream, who was his wife and pregnant with his child, or the real-life "Bones". In Harbingers in the Fountain Booth is confused about his feelings for Brennan. Looking at brain scans which show Booth is not really in love with Brennan but is just believing that because of the dream. Even though Camille and Sweets told Booth that his love probably is because of the dream he takes the risk of telling Brennan he loves her, "in a professional and atta girl kinda way." As the fifth season progresses, however, things begin to get more complicated as Booth regains the use of his mental faculties and comes to the realization that he is, in fact, in love with Brennan and likely always has been, even if he won't or would not admit it. He is finally confronted by this when he has to recertify as a sharpshooter for the FBI. When he becomes concerned that he will fail the examination, he talks to Dr. Gordon-Gordon, his and Brennan's therapist and friend from season two. Though Gordon has become a chef since his retirement, he confronts Booth about his feelings for Bones, and Booth admits that he is in love with her, but that she would never accept that because of her relationship fears. By putting himself in the position to "protect her" by having her appear at his testing, he is able to shoot a perfect score. In the 100th episode, The Parts in the Sum of the Whole, Booth and Bones' entire relationship is redefined as they discuss their first case and first meeting with Sweets. It turns out that the two were immediately attracted to each other, and decided to go out on a date together before the end of the case when Booth has to "fire" Bones for punching a suspect in the face. Booth and Bones have drinks together, and share a passionate kiss, though Bones decides to go home rather than to stay with Booth that night, as she is somewhat inebriated. Their kiss is so good to Booth that he makes the choice to go home as well rather than to stay out and gamble that night, marking the first time that he chooses to not gamble. The next morning, however, Bones is furious that Booth got her drunk and they begin to argue as their personality differences clash with a vengeance, leading to the two of them to insult each other nastily. After they catch the killer, Bones questions the evidence in front of a bereaved mother, and Booth furiously hauls her outside to stop her. Bones slaps him and accuses him of being a bully and using his strength and the force of his personality to intimidate people, to which Booth responds that she is the same way with her intelligence. After he makes a snide comment about her father, Brennan coldly vows to never work with him again, and Booth agrees, though he appears heavily conflicted when she leaves the office. In the current time, Sweets furiously tells them that they missed their moment and are punishing each other for it, and that Booth is the gambler and has to take the chance. Outside the office, Booth takes the plunge and tells Brennan that he is like the old men who tell their children that they saw their spouses and "knew" that they were the one, and that he "knew" that Bones was the one for him from the moment he saw her. They kiss, but Brennan bursts into tears (one of the only times she's cried in front of him, and one of the only times that Booth has cried in front of anyone) and claims that she's a scientist and can't change, though it's clear that she's terrifed of him hurting her the way that everyone seems to hurt her, and that she can't return his feelings. They decide to remain partners, as Brennan appears generally frightened at the prospect of losing him from her life, though Seeley tells her that he has to find someone for him who can love him the way that she can't. Though Bones appears heartbroken, she agrees. Although things remain awkward between them, Booth remains by Brennan's side, and they even dance to "Kiss from a Rose" by Seal at her high school reunion, as she never got to have a slow dance at her prom. Shortly thereafter, Booth meets an attractive marine biologist named Katherine, and they initiate a romantic relationship. This causes some tension between Booth and Bones, as she seems jealous of Katherine but won't admit it. She starts a relationship with Booth's boss, Hacker. Despite their other relationships, the two usually end up alone together at the end of the night in a diner or the bar. When Brennan comments that Katherine is "very attractive" using herself as a standard, Booth seriously tells her that "Bones, you are the standard" by which he judges women's beauty, and Brennan can't say a word in response. Characterization Seeley does not fit in socially with the collection of "geeks" (whom he and his FBI colleagues refer to as "squints") making up Dr. Brennan's team. Seeley fills out the stereotype of the "All-American boy" — now all grown up — very well. He is world-wise, socially at ease with people, very athletic, and apparently sexually confident with women (a contrast to the humorous social bumbling sometimes exhibited by some of Dr. Brennan's team). Booth often refers to himself as a jock, having played basketball and several other sports in high school and college. A signed picture of Bruins player Cam Neely can be seen in the background behind his desk. Seeley is a fan of Classic rock and Arena rock music. He has expressed great affection for the group Foreigner and poked fun at Bones for her interest in new world, jazz music and hip hop. He also likes the band Poco and sang their song, Keep on Trying with Bones. In the season three finale, it is also shown he listens to the hardcore punk/punkabilly band Social Distortion. It could also be inferred that he is or at least was a fan of the original wave of hardcore punk, as in the Season 4 episode "Mayhem on the Cross" he mentions that his father thought that Black Flag and the Dead Kennedys sounded the same (with the implication that Booth disagrees). Given the relatively underground nature of the California hardcore punk scene (of which Social Distortion, Black Flag and the Dead Kennedys were all seminal members), lacking radio airplay, mainstream press coverage, etc., its most likely that the only way Booth's father would have heard these bands was if Booth himself had been playing their records. Seeley's brother, Jared, comments in "The Con Man in the Meth Lab" Seeley is a fan of the Philadelphia Flyers hockey team. He is also a fan of the Pittsburgh Steelers mentioned by Gordon Watt, also a cup with a Steelers logo is visible on his desk in several episodes Seeley seems to get on quite well with Angela Montenegro and Jack Hodgins, but finds Zack's cold naivety a little disconcerting, to the extent he leads Zack to believe the fact that Seeley rarely acknowledges his existence is a sign of male bonding, so that he doesn't have to talk to him. Booth stated in "The Girl in the Gator" Howard Epps was his fiftieth kill. However, Booth was not technically responsible for Epps death, so as of "The Man in the Cell" his official kill count is at 49. However, as of "Harbingers in the Fountain", Booth's official kill count is 53, as he killed the serial killer dressed as a clown in "Mummy in the Maze", bringing it to 50, Gormogon at the end of "The Pain in the Heart", bringing it to 51, and shot a conning sheriff who shot Dr. Temperance Brennan in "The Con Man in the Meth Lab" bringing the total to 52, though a death was never confirmed, in diologue. He also shot a doctor who attacked Dr. Brennan in "Harbingers in the Fountain", bringing it to 53. It has been said in a TV Guide article Booth is supposed to be a relative of historical figure John Wilkes Booth. It was mentioned on the Twitter page of producer Hart Hanson.http://twitter.com/HartHanson/status/1860411478 It was confirmed on The Proof in the Pudding that he is a descendant. Season Three In the Season 3 episode The Wannabe in the Weeds, Booth is stalked by a suspect in his investigation. She is suspected for the murder because she had stalked the victim. The woman, Pam, began stalking Booth because she feels a special connection with him, inspired by his reassuring touch as she grieved over the victim's death. At the end of the episode, Pam tries to shoot Temperance, jealous of her close relationship with Booth. Booth, however, dives in front of Brennan and tries to stop Pam as she pulls the trigger, but he inadvertently takes the bullet. The episode ends with Booth falling unconscious and bleeding. Though he does not actually die, the FBI fakes his death in order to complete an investigation at the beginning of the Season 3 finale. thumb|300px|right|Booth in the premiere of season five Relationships Camille Saroyan Seeley rekindled an old relationship with Dr. Camille Saroyan when she joined the Jeffersonian team. However, Seeley ended the relationship for the second time after an intense case nearly cost Camille her life, with Seeley asserting on-the-job romantic relationships endanger the team in high-pressure situations. Booth is shown to have known Dr. Saroyan for some length of time (she mentions she has known Booth and his brother Jared for 15 years in the fourth season), with both of them possessing extensive familiarity with the other's family members. Despite the breakup, Camille and Seeley have remained close friends, working together on cases and giving each other advice on numerous occasions. Temperance Brennan While Seeley and Brennan maintain a professional relationship and friendship, there is also a level of deep emotional attachment evident on both their parts, as well as a hint of romantic and sexual tension within their relationship.Pastorek, W., "110629||0_0_,00.html Bones", Entertainment Weekly. August 30, 2006. April 7, 2007. This tension is crucial to the plot of the series, with fleeting minor characters constantly mistaking Booth and Brennan for a romantic couple, which they consistently and vehemently deny. Though denying a romantic relationship, they tend to spend more and more time together outside work throughout the series. They "nearly" dated, having lunch and dinner together and he taught her how to skate. Particularly, Seeley is apparently jealous of Temperance's romantic relationships in the episodes "Two Bodies in the Lab", "The Woman in Limbo", "The Boneless Bride in the River", "The Con Man in the Meth Lab" and "A Night at the Bones Museum". Booth has shown a tendency throughout the television series of intimidating, confronting or competing with anyone he believes to have a sexual interest in Brennan, including his own brother. He is also extremely protective of her in general, and is often defensive of her to the point of physically assaulting those who pose a threat to her safety. He has saved Temperance's life in several episodes, digging her out by hand when she is buried alive, jumping in front of a gun pointed at her, violently threatening a gang member into calling off a hit put out on her, shooting a crazed and corrupt doctor who had just stabbed her, and shooting a crooked FBI agent-turned-hit man just as he is about to bash in the back of her skull with a gun. In other instances where he believes Brennan's life to be endangered, Booth often (to Brennan's annoyance) refuses to leave her side, once offering to sleep on the couch at her apartment and flying immediately from Washington D.C. to New Orleans after Temperance wakes up bloodied, beaten and possibly date-raped in her hotel room. In "The Woman in the Sand" Seeley is extremely impressed when he sees Brennan in a somewhat revealing dress he picked out for her, and slaps her buttocks later in the episode to convince others they are a couple while undercover as a street fighter and his "sugar mama". In many other episodes he appears somewhat stunned whenever he sees her in revealing clothing, such as a Wonder Woman Halloween costume, a dress for a date with another man, and a gown for an event at the Jeffersonian. Booth has admitted to Brennan and to her father he finds her "well-structured" and "beautiful", and once reassured her that she has "her looks and a whole lot more". In the third season their relationship was extended as they were forced to undergo therapy together with Dr. Sweets even though Booth intimidated Sweets at first. Sweets said that though they were very close to one another, he detected very deep emotional tension between them. He told them they were avoiding talking about their personal lives by talking about work. Both Brennan and Booth are very protective of each other and seem to have agreed to mock Sweets on this point. In "The Santa in the Slush" Brennan's father wants to spend Christmas with their family, so Brennan asks prosecution attorney Caroline Julian to "pull some strings", though Seeley cautions Temperance that Caroline will want something in return. Caroline jokingly blackmails Brennan; amused by Booth and Brennan's longstanding insistence they do not view each other in a sexual light, she demands Brennan kiss Seeley on the lips for 5 "steamboats" (seconds), using mistletoe as an excuse. He became freaked out hearing about the deal and wanted to know why, but Caroline was only feeling "Puckish". The two kiss, and to the shock of Caroline (and themselves) the kiss lasts for 12 (in the extended scene on the DVD, 16), not 5, "steamboats", during which Brennan's chewing gum ends up in Booth's mouth for a humorous effect. It is revealed in the Season 3 episode "Intern in the Incinerator" Booth knows Dr. Brennan's favorite things very well, naming her favorite flowers and planet and effectively guessing her choices for computer passwords. In several episodes he presents her with small, quirky personal gifts and favors, including a toy pig named Jasper, a 'Brainy Smurf' action figure, and a Christmas tree for her family. He often comforts and hugs Brennan after severe emotional distress associated with her personal life and their jobs. Throughout the series, despite their bickering and teasing, Booth has made it clear to Brennan he has a deep respect for her as a woman, a professional, and as a person. In the Season 3 episode "The Wannabe in the Weeds", Seeley is stalked by Pam, a suspect in his investigation. The emotionally unstable woman is suspected for the murder because she had previously stalked the victim. She subsequently begins stalking Booth, stating she feels a special connection with him, inspired by his reassuring touch as she grieved over the victim's death. At the end of the episode, Pam tries to shoot Temperance, jealous of her close relationship with Booth and mistaking them for lovers. Seeley, however, steps in front of Brennan and tries to stop Pam as she pulls the trigger, but he inadvertently takes the bullet. Brennan then picks up Seeley's gun and shoots Pam in the throat without wavering. In the next episode, it is revealed he survived but Brennan was unaware of his survival, so the two had an argument about the trust factor in their relationship. Otherwise, Booth talks with Brennan about his top secret missions. In season 4, he accompanied her to her trip to England for a conference. He hated the country and shouted it out loud while trying to navigate London's streets behind the wheel ("Yanks in the U.K."). He also came with her on her trip to China "The Passenger in the Oven". He was also there to comfort her when she reveals her abuse as a child from her foster parents, and is willing to share some of his past in order to help her. He also bonds with Sweets on this occasion, forming, in the words of doctor Gordon Wyatt (Stephen Fry), something of a family. In the season four episode "The Critic in the Cabernet", Brennan asks Seeley to become the father of her child, to which he responds to with great stress. Over the course of the episode, he begins to hallucinate Stewie Griffin to a point where he converses with the character in front of Brennan and a suspect they were questioning. If it were not for Brennan's insistence to go to a doctor, the benign tumor causing the hallucinations might not have been found or possibly found too late to save Booth. Before going into surgery, Booth donates his semen to Brennan so she can have a child. He found out earlier in the episode his count was 28.8 million for three milliliters. After the surgery is successful and Seeley awakes from a four day coma, he began murmuring about how the dream was so real. Brennan does not understand what he is mumbling and becomes scared and upset when he asks her, 'Who are you?'. In an interview with Hart Hanson he states that Booth remembers Brennan but he is not sure if she is the Brennan from the alternate reality episode "The End in the Beginning" or if she is his partner 'Bones'. In the season five premiere "Harbingers in the Fountain", Booth and Brennan are repeatedly said to, essentially, have deeper feelings than they show; indeed, when Booth is accused of being in love with Brennan by Cam, he does not deny it and even seems to wordlessly acknowledge it and he smiles (quite unlike his reaction before the coma, in which he always denied this vehemently). Booth, fearing that he may not be the same person that he was before the coma, asks Cam for advice; Cam, who quickly realizes that Booth is in love with Brennan, appears to encourage how he feels and reassures him that he is still the same person, but warns him that if he admits his feelings for Bones and later changes his mind, Brennan will never trust anyone again. Sweets later gives a similar warning; after seeing scans of Booth's brain that prove that Booth has been in love since the coma, Sweets believes that this feeling, like Booth's other symptoms of his coma, will fade away in time, and expresses his belief that Booth is not truly in love Brennan. However, Angela's psychic, Avalon Harmonia, tells him that while the scans may show his brain, "they don't know jack" about his heart. Soon after, Booth saves Brennan after she is attacked by a corrupt doctor; at this point, he kisses her on the head and calls her "baby" while comforting her. Booth later tells Bones that he loves her, but quickly covers it up by adding, "You know, in a professional, 'atta-girl' kind of way." After discovering he is no longer afraid of clowns due to his coma, he seems to realize that Dr. Sweets' warning could be legitimate, and that this love he is feeling may be a symptom of the coma. Brennan seems to accept this, saying "Right back atcha, Booth," and the two laugh, covering the awkward moment. See Also * Bones and Booth Category:Characters Category:Main characters Category:Season 1 characters Category:Season 2 characters Category:Season 3 characters Category:FBI Category:Season 4 characters Category:Season 5 characters Category:Incomplete article